Banks to remain open on Saturday & Sunday for tax collection

KARACHI: In order to assist taxpayers in fulfilling their government tax obligations, banks with Saturday operating hours in Karachi will extend their banking hours until 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 30th, 2024, and Sunday, March 31st, 2024.

This extension aims to facilitate tax collection through Alternate Delivery Channels (ADCs) and Over-the-Counter facilities.

To ensure prompt clearing and settlement of payment instruments, the National Institutional Facilitation Technologies (NIFT) has been instructed to organize special clearings at 4:00 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. This initiative aims to prevent delays in processing tax receipts by ensuring they are cleared on the same day.

Additionally, banks have been directed to ensure that no government receipts remain unattended at branch counters during the extended office hours. Any instruments pertaining to government receipts received during this time must be promptly lodged in the special clearing scheduled for March 31st, 2024.

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Furthermore, banks are advised to keep their branches open on both March 30th and 31st, 2024, for as long as necessary to facilitate the special clearings for government transactions conducted by NIFT.